GENERAL FRANCISCO Franco's headquarters announced that the long-heralded "Christmas offensive" had been unleashed this morning amid a driving snow-storm.
Already, the announcement claimed, the Nationalist forces had smashed the Republi lines at four points along the western boundary of Catalonia. General Franco, cloaked in a Moroccan burnoose, directed the [drive from a spot near his principal base at Saragossa, For nearly a_month General Franco had been massing a force of nearly 250,000 troops, wi 400 pursuit planes and bombers and fleets of whippet tanks behind his lines in preparation for what is expected to be the biggest of the eight major Nationalist offensives of the war.
The chief object of the "Christmas offensive" is the capture lof Barcelona, 84 miles from the Nationalists' advance base at It was from Lerida that the advance got underway this morning, with supplies and replacements pouring through the town for the troops at most points of the front.
Surrounding Barcelona, however, was the so-called "Iron ring," defence works built of steel and concrete and manned by every able-bodied Catalonian between the ages of seventeen and sixty.
Although General Franco's forces isolated Ca'alonia from the rest of Republican Spain when he drove a corridor to the Mediterranean coast at Vinaroz early this year, the task of conquering 10,000 square miles of [Catalonian territory still remains.
The main Nationalist offensive force, centred near Lerida, struck Jeastwards shortly after 8 o'clock this morning and claimed to have cracked the Republican lines In the Segre River valley after a terrific bombardment. Afler breaking through the Tines, the communique stated that the [Nationalist troops "continued strong ly" toward the coast, apparently con Jcentrating their advance along the: railway line through Cervera toward Manresa. The communique claims that four Republican planes were shot this morning, in the Scare tense fire all along the Sexre front, continuing their shelling which began yesterday. General Franco's artillery. concentrated its fire along the sce ior {from Tromp to Balaguer, the former being forty miles and the Tatter fifteen miles north of Lerida, This appeared today to be the sector selected for the major drive, Despite the bad weather the mountains, Nationalist, planes and artillery ce-operated in' trying to destroy the defences of Republican [General Vincente Rojo, but as far as [could be ascertained from independent sources along the French border, the Nationalist infantry did not move forward. However, hundreds of refugees poured into the little Pyrenees capital Jot Andorra from the Catalan zone behind the Government lines in anti> cipation of the attack, Tremendous Artillery Fire Throughout the day Nationalist and. Republican artillery exchanged in-
Argentine Against US. Proposal Lima, Dec, 20.
The United States policy towards the Totalitarian Powers today faced st deadlock in Lima over the form of the proposed declaration of continental solidarity.
Attempts on the part of the United States delegation to line up the 21 American republics in a united stand against foreign military and ideclogical aggression today continued to meet strong resistance from Argentina, despite the efforts of Brazil ind Peru to reconcile the opposing 'A. compromise declaration was @rafted by the head of the Brazilian delegation and the Peruvian Foreign Minister, and was circulated to the various "delegations to the Conference. However, the impression was growing that Argentina would re~ main adamant and not support any reference to "non-American" aggression. Any such reference Argentina reported to regard as a rebuff 0 European nations.
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